9 Comments

Ralph Metsersnich
April 21, 2017

An organized media blitz by his family and his ‘gang’ to portray him as a pillar of morality and beacon of goodness. No mention of the party itself was a racially based event to begin with by his race based cult and their ‘party’. The very first thing the ‘witnesss’ cried was racism. They are the racists. HSU have propped up their boy and the school has subtlety covered their own asses as to the destructive culture HSU has brought to Arcata and along with local media have condemned the ‘suspect’ as if they are judge jury and executioner before any trial or even a hearing. Good thing it isn’t legal to lynch white people. We all know college students never lie and are superior to local citizens.

How fucking delusional must you be to type that up and claim they are the racists? Literally look at what you just wrote and tell me racist ignorant people such as yourself are not the problem. You just referred to them as a “gang” and “boys” just because of their color instead of having some fucking respect like a decent human being.

Are you kidding? Do you understand that a kid what killed? You’re calling his club a gang? People of color understandably have a harder time finding communities to fit into in rule places like Arcata where 83% of people here are Caucasian. I’m white and I’ve been to a BU party and no one told me that I couldn’t be there because of the color of my skin. The were welcoming and we shared drinks. BU gives people of color a place to feel safe and have belonging. I can’t even see where your anger is coming from. No one is threatening to ‘lynch’ you. What could possibly threaten you about a community coming together to hold a memorial for a 19 year old kid who was killed? None of this is even about YOU. It’s about these people who tragically lost someone they love.

A stroll through Mr. Lawson’s Facebook page reveals a unbecoming portrait of the man. His first video clip shows three African Americans in white-face (white makeup) mocking white people while using extremely vile, sexually-oriented, language. Another half-dozen or so of Lawson’s videos appears to play the victim-card relative to the treatment of African Americans by law enforcement and/or white people. To an outsider it might appear that Mr. Lawson has a considerable grudge against white people and law enforcement.
Surely, Mr. Lawson did not deserve to die. However, the investigation is young and we should not be so quick to assume that Mr. Lawson was faultless in the events leading up to his grave misfortune.
At this point all we know is that one man is dead and that the man charged with his death received a vicious beating. At this point we do not know who provoked whom nor the level or means of that provocation. At this point a lot of people seem to be pointing to racism, but it is unclear it the racism was unleashed by Mr. Lawson, Mr. Zoellner or others.
Maybe someone can uncover one or more videos on Mr. Zoellner’s Facebook page that celebrate blackface caricatures or African American growers being robbed during home invasions by white people.

TR: so now we blame the victim? “the investigation is young and we should not be so quick to assume that Mr. Lawson was faultles” ITS MURDER!! of course you would say that a black victim probably did something to deserve it. Why do you take it as a personal attack that people of color say racism exists? You are disgusting and this comments only proves you are a blatant racist!

Are you kidding? Do you understand that a kid what killed? You’re calling his club a gang? People of color understandably have a harder time finding communities to fit into in rule places like Arcata where 83% of people here are Caucasian. I’m white and I’ve been to a BU party and no one told me that I couldn’t be there because of the color of my skin. The were welcoming and we shared drinks. BU gives people of color a place to feel safe and have belonging. I can’t even see where your anger is coming from. No one is threatening to ‘lynch’ you. What could possibly threaten you about a community coming together to hold a memorial for a 19 year old kid who was killed? None of this is even about YOU. It’s about these people who tragically lost someone they love.

Please folks, know that the ignorant, racist, sexist and other reprehensible comments I’ve seen over the years here on Lumberjack and LostCoast Outpost (comments section and loco articles; macro and micro-aggressions) do NOT represent the whole of Humboldt county. I’ve lived here since 2004. MANY of us DO know that like any community, & just like the nation, institutionalized racism, sexism, classism and all systems of injustice are alive and well, as are the beliefs that enable these systems to function. AND as a result, there are so many of us working ourselves to the bone to end all forms of violence, end all systems of injustice, and change the belief systems that allow violence and injustice to flourish here, nationally and around the world. Change is possible and it’s happening. At the same time, those of us committed to real, transformative change clearly have a lot of work to do. May Joshia Lawson rest in peace and may his loved ones keep faith, love and compassion within themselves, with one another and the communities of which they are a part, and with the Creator. May all of us also keep the faith, be genuine allies, and truly be the change we want to see.